Graffiti Art: All Natural Graffiti Made from Moss

I just love a DIY urban beautification project! Whether we’re talking about Kintta’s yarn graffiti or using seedbombs to spread greenery to blighted spaces, I’m struck by how much a little color can impact the urban landscape. Moss graffiti art and moss carvings definitely fall under this umbrella.

Moss Graffiti Art

Unlike spray paint, moss graffiti art is all natural and healthy to work with. You can paint words or images, and the moss fills in like magic! It’s easy as pie to whip up a batch of moss paint. Here’s how:

In your blender, combine:

One can of cheap beer or 1 1/2 cups buttermilk

A few handfuls of moss

One teaspoon of sugar.

Blend until the mixture is smooth, and you’re ready to get painting!

You can use a brush to paint your moss onto concrete walls, rocks, or brick. Mist the moss once a day to help it thrive, and soon your green graffiti will take hold! If you’re looking to take this project to the streets, use caution- we don’t want to be responsible for any vandalism charges!

Moss Carvings

Already have a mossy wall? You can also play around with using that as your canvas and carve a design right into the moss. Use a spoon or a butter knife to carve out your designs. Again, be careful if you’re not on your own property! You don’t want to get in trouble for trespassing.

Have you guys seen other examples of cool, moss graffiti art? Share away in the comments!

About the Author

Becky Striepe My name is Becky Striepe (rhymes with “sleepy”), and I am a crafts and food writer from Atlanta, Georgia with a passion for making our planet a healthier, happier, and more compassionate place to live. My mission is to make vegan food and crafts accessible to everyone!. If you like my work, you can also find me on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.

We must do all we can to harness the power of nature and this moss painting idea is just excellent. I will try it out at the earliest opportunity and thank you for giving us this.

http://rantingcollegestudent.blogspot.com Raen

This post is probably old enough that nobody will see this question, but where does one find a few handfulls of moss in the desert?

AVBrown

You could probably order some on-line if you can’t get it locally. Just do a search on Bing or Google. I hope this helps….Good Luck!

kristina

you can also usually buy moss in florists shops, just ask they’ll probably keep it in the back

Angelheart

Good luck with that

Bbsllc1968

How do you get the letters so perfect? I’m dyin’ to do this but don’t wanna start until I know how to make the letters looks so pretty :0)

Lisa

Stencil.

http://twitter.com/MrsNo17 Rachel Reeves

Will this grow on any concrete wall? I have concrete walls lining my backyard and would like to do it, but some are in full sun for a majority of the day….

Miss Bandit

wont the moss grow and spread and to a big blobby mossy mess eventually? and then defeat the whole trying to make a cool design? then i would be sad

http://swanfeet.wordpress.com Caitlyn

eventually, but I would think that would take at least a few months, if not much longer. you’d have plenty of time to enjoy it, and then you could scrape it all off and do something else

http://www.cookcleancraft.com/ Narelle @ Cook Clean Craft

My husband has a weird obsession with moss. I think he’d love this!

Jackie

Wonderful idea. Off to get moss and buttermilk!

Brianna

is it moss seed or like, moss moss?

http://swanfeet.wordpress.com Caitlyn

pretty sure you want the actual moss – you get the spores that way. certainly that’s how they did it on mythbusters

http://swanfeet.wordpress.com Caitlyn

any idea how long it takes the moss to grow?

Bird Arthur

lol can imagine the taggers out there all resorting to “MossArt” as a tag….hehehehhee

http://www.facebook.com/girlinthegymclass Kathryn Mae Lambert

By no means am I a delinquent of any kind… but I really want to write on some buildings that aren’t my own now. Maybe I’ll write on the junior high across the street, “Knowledge is power.”

Ingrid Wilson

Another Moss ?: What type of moss is this? I live in FL and we have spanish moss. I don’t think that is the same as seen here. Would it still work? Thanks for helping.

http://twitter.com/ladyphlogiston Caitlyn

the moss she’s using is not spanish moss – it’s a very small plant that grows like a green fuzz on walls and rocks and sidewalk cracks. I expect it does grow in florida if you keep an eye out for it.

according to wikipedia, spanish moss is not a true moss, but it is an airplant (its gets nutrients from the air, not through its roots) and it can propogate vegetatively (bits of spanish moss can break off and grow into a new plant) so it might work. It’s probably worth a try – after all, you can always wash it off if nothing happens. You probably don’t want to blend it into a smooth paste, though – cutting it into short bits might work better.

Let us know if it works!

Brookeinfla1

so i did this today but then flies came, did anyone encounter this and how long did it last?

How does moss keep up in the winter? I’d love to do this, but do I have to wait until Spring?

http://glueandglitter.com/main Becky Striepe

I wouldn’t try to start moss during the winter. It might do OK if you can get it established before the first freeze and are very attentive with spritzing it, but you may be better off waiting for warmer, damper weather.

http://KWightArmstrong.com Krystal Wight Armstrong

Thanks for the amazing idea and post! I know others asked, but I’d love some more specifics on:
-What kind of moss to use, how/where to get it, and in what form you throw it into the mix.
-I’d also like to know what works the best- the beer or buttermilk?
-And any more specific planting instructions, like when/what time of year. How much light/water it needs on a daily basis, and even how long it takes to sprout and then expand from the original shape.
Thanks again, and I look forward to hearing back from you. Any details or info on that stuff would be much appreciated! Happy November

I’d use moss that you find in your area. Like Caitlyn says above, you want the green fuzzy find. Just scrape some into a container, and you’re ready to go.
I’m not sure how buttermilk works. Since I’m vegan, I’ve only done moss milkshakes with beer.
You want warm, humid weather if possible, so late spring/early summer is probably ideal.
How long it takes to grow depends on a few factors, like how humid the air is, how much you spritz, and what kind of moss you found. It can take as little as 3 or 4 weeks or as long as 8 weeks, so be patient!

Hi there – quick question, and it may be a silly one. I’m assuming after ‘painting’ you’re spritzing the area regularly with with just the beer/sugar mixture (sans moss)? Obviously it’d have to be only on the letters, because otherwise the moss would spread…just wondering how you’d do it in the beginning since the moss wouldn’t have taken hold so quickly (might be difficult to see where to spray) – without using outlines or something.

http://glueandglitter.com/main Becky Striepe

Yep! just spritz it with the water/sugar mixture. You don’t have to be super precise, but you might try to spritz just the moss. It shouldn’t spread too much. At first, you can spritz the whole area without worrying too much. Since, like you said, the moss hasn’t taken hold, it will most likely start growing where you painted it. The spreading shouldn’t be an issue so early on.

Elizabeth

Is this easy to remove? I want to try it out on the balcony of my apartment, my husband said I could if I asked the landlords. I figure they’ll want to be sure it comes off easily in order to allow it. Does it just scrape off? Is there any chance of being overcome with unwanted moss?

http://glueandglitter.com/main Becky Striepe

That’s a good question! I’m not sure about how easy it is to remove. You might scrub it off with a coarse brush (like the kind you’d get to scrub a deck)? I also found this, which says it’s a natural product to get rid of moss:

Oh my goodness this is amazing and genius!! Thanks so much for sharing!

http://www.momma-harvey.blogspot.com Leslie

Will this only work on concrete and brick? What about a wood fence?

http://glueandglitter.com/main Becky Striepe

I’m not sure about wood, but I’d love to hear how it goes if you try it!

MonicaM

wondering if you tried it on wood? i also want to do this on my fence

Debbie

I believe the moss (and be retained water) will rot a porous surface like wood.

http://www.madmadme.com Charissa

This is the most amazing idea! I will have to do this with my kids. Thank you for sharing!

Alice

I can’t wait to try this….but really don’t wanna put moss in my blender. Any tips on how to mix it evenly without putting it in the blender?
Thanks

http://glueandglitter.com/main Becky Striepe

You could try using a mortar and pestle to grind up the moss, then whisking it together by hand, maybe.

Kari

I would go to the local thrift store and but one cheep for a project like this one.

http://pinterest.com Kristina Dendinger

How timely, I collected some moss only 5 hours ago. I intenden to keep and grow then apply to an plant pot or sculpture later on this winter. It is part of a intention to redesign my front garden. While quite wide, it fills only about 4 feet between tall house and the street. The removing and replacing plants will be expensive and lengthy. Maybe I could begin by posting a moss message saying ,”Time will tell” on the plaster wall.

Kelly

What does this whole quote say?

Kendra

How long does it take for the moss to grow? I want to do this for a student project and my exhibition is March 30th.

paul

do i have to blender it with its roots and the soil? pls reply.

http://glueandglitter.com/main Becky Striepe

You can, yep! Mine had roots and dirt in it.

paul

oh thanks! i have to try it HAHA! this is so freakin amazing! hmm

Kendra

Nobody ever seems to answer the question…how long does it take to grow…please reply

http://pennytokensstampinspot.blogspot.com Penny Hanuszak

I’m loving the look of this moss scape. Thanks for sharing all your information and to everyone else who asked the questions that crossed my mind too! Appreciated.

Seriously, the one question repeated over and over, how long will it take to grow. I suppose I’ll come back and answere if mine does! I did this yesterday and as of now it looks like mud, I can’t wait for it to get green so my neighbors will stop wondering why I painted the word “wonderment” with mud on a highly visible wall!!! I painted it under a walk way to my front door but realized it does get quite a bit of sun mid day, is it neccisary to keep moist 24/7, can it be dry a few hours? I’m having trouble keeping up with that in Colorado! I was so excited to find moss here though, deep in the mountains. It’s a desert where I live!

http://glueandglitter.com/main Becky Striepe

Wow, I sincerely apologize for the oversight! It depends on a lot of things, but can take up to 8 weeks. Hope this helps!

Tiffany Van Watermulen

Okay so I think im going to try and use this technique for my wedding arrangements…. I was wondering if this would work on wood or cloth? I want to try to make an aisle runner and table runners…. what advice do you have for going about this?

Sue K.

Congratulations on your wedding. I came across this while looking at other moss ideas. Its not exactly growing fresh moss, but might be a second option. Your florist could also probably get it for you.

I tried this, and it has been 2 weeks, still nothing. I have been sprinking it with a fine mist sprinkler… site gets partial sun so that may be a problem. I also added some hydrating gel to the mix. I think I may have gotten it to thin. May paint over it with a better mixture.

wanda

I’d like to try this. But the apartment folk would like to know if it’ll come off…does it? Can I help it come off faster?

http://www.etsy.com/shop/LEAVESandHONEY Alexandra

This is amazing. Who came up with this? I so curious! I think this would make a great gift for someone you love. A moss heart on an old wooden board for Valentines.

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